Matteson Landau (JD '24), "NCAA Enactment of a Disciplinary Policy: Uniformity to Regain Institutional Legitimacy" -- Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review

Pepperdine Caruso Law alumna Matteson Landau (JD '24) has published "NCAA Enactment of a Disciplinary Policy: Uniformity to Regain Institutional Legitimacy" in the Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review, 44 Loy. L.A. Ent. L. Rev. 163 (2024). The article argues that the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) has the knowledge and resources necessary to implement a centralized disciplinary enforcement policy for student-athletes who engage in criminal misconduct. 

Abstract of "NCAA Enactment of a Disciplinary Policy: Uniformity to Regain Institutional Legitimacy"

This article examines issues surrounding decentralized disciplinary systems and inconsistent enforcement against student-athletes who engage in criminal misconduct across the National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”). The NCAA recognizes the inherent conflicts of interest that arise when institutions are left to regulate their own recruiting practices. To negate these conflicts, the NCAA has established a robust disciplinary system, the NCAA Committee on Infractions, which oversees investigations into violations of NCAA Bylaws, reviews materials provided by the athlete and/or institution, and issues binding rulings which may include suspensions and fines. Yet the NCAA fails to see how the same conflict issues arise when schools are left in charge of investigating and imposing suspensions or disciplinary measures on their own star student-athletes for violating the law. While some institutions implement policies to ensure fairness, others deal with criminal misconduct allegations on an ad hoc basis. The resulting patchwork system of enforcement creates loopholes in which athletes can transfer from school to school to avoid appropriate punishment. This article argues that the NCAA has the knowledge and resources necessary to implement a centralized disciplinary enforcement policy. Such a policy would absolve individual institutions of the responsibility to issue fair discipline despite adverse incentives. Furthermore, stepping into a new area of regulation provides an avenue for the NCAA to remain relevant in an era of increasing conference autonomy, expiry of amateurism, and an ever-shifting college athletics landscape.

The complete article may be found at Loyola of Los Angeles Entertainment Law Review